Lewitt LCT 140 AIR

I'm amazed! This little feather-weight condenser mic sounds like a miracle. It makes you feel like you just got away with a huge bargain, or maybe the guys at Lewitt made a mistake and put a much more costly diaphragm in this one.

No, seriously, you have to give it a chance. A huge thanks to Warren Huart at Produce Like a Pro for the hint.

I previously used a Rode Nt1 or an Aston Origin for recording acoustic guitars. I've also tried a SM57. However, after trying virtually any position on those three mics, I could never come up with a sound that I actually liked.

The reality is: you CAN record an acoustic with a large diaphragm mic, or with SM57, and I'm sure it can be done rather well, especially if you posses a very expensive mic, but a small diaphragm is especially made for this purpose. The fact is: this sorts of mics don't pick up much bottom-end, so it's virtually impossible to get bass booming, unless you place the mic directly in front of the sound, a few inches away, I guess.

This little wonder also has an high pass filter, however, just to make sure. You can disable it if you don't need it. It can also be used with drums and there's an attenuator for that purpose, which takes off 12 Dbs "for distortion-free recording of high SPL instruments" (says the instruction manual).The sound function lets you switch between "Air" (a little boost on the high frequencies) or "FLAT" (as in flat Eq).

I'm not going to elaborate further on the quality of sounds this little things is capable of, because, really, it's stunning. Comes with a mic clip, a bag and a little windscreen.

Pros
-Unbelievable price/quality ratio
-Clear, crisp sound and Acoustic guitars
-Lightness

Cons
-None
Pros

Out of the box, this mic feels surprisingly light, which was slightly disconcerting, but so far this has not posed any problems. All the switches are affirmative and secured correctly. So overall, no complaints. Seems to be solid.

Mainly I'm using this mic to record handheld percussion and acoustic guitars so far. It seems to me to give a very forward, present sound and works really nicely with some light compression. Noticeably more complimentary than other similar mics I have. (akg c1000 v1)

It also has really good side and rear rejection. This is the biggest bonus for me. Obviously important in untreated rooms, and live use. In the mix, you really hear whether the difference is. I seemingly have more detail apparent, and things sounds more polished before I apply any eq.

So a really nice mic in my drawer. No doubt after more time working with it and comparing to my other mics, I'll find things that it's weaker on and the others might do better. But all in all, a great mic. If you only have room/need/budget for 1 mic for recording. This will do you handsomely.

Now here's my only gripe, and hence the deduction of 1 star overall. I have no use for the 'air' feature. In my application, it just makes everything brittle sounding. I've only tried it on acoustic guitar. Without the air setting, fantastic. With it engaged, to my ears at any rate, it adds nothing I want.

So that said, I would still heartily recommend this mic. For some applications the Air setting must be good, indeed I've heard demos where it seems to add a lovely shimmer. But it's not something I'm using, but this does not put me off at all.

Context/Use:
I was looking for a mic to give me a great recording for my acoustic guitars. I had used in the past large condensers but, given the limitations of my home studio, they would catch weird resonances than then I would try to fix "in the mix" (requiring a lot of time and guess work from my side). As you may know, while in some cases you can enhance some things in post-production, the best approach is to get the right sound "at the source".


Clarity:
Enter the Lewitt LCT 140 AIR. The recordings (the source material) it gives me are massively better than what I would get with a single LDC. This is because, the LCT 140 AIR being a small diaphragm condensers, captures better the transients/dynamics of the strings and also has a narrower polar pattern (so, my - not awesome - room does not play such a big role anymore).

Furthermore, the AIR function of this mics gives you something that sounds "like a record" already, without the need to do much work in post/in the mix.

Pros
- awesome sound, with the AIR function it "like a record"
- AIR function can also be deactivated (in case you are looking for a less bright/present tone)
- high-pass filter- in case you want to eliminate some rumble and your interface does not offer this or you don't have an external EQ or can't/don't want to do it in post-production)
- simple to use (the AIR and high-pass filter are easy to understand and enable/disable)
- comes with a mic holder and bag

Cons:
- none really. If you want to be super picky, because the mic is so light, it might not work on a spring arm (like the Rode PS1). Not a big deal though, you can use a standard mic stand (even the cheap ones will hold it, since it's so light).

All in all, I'm very happy with this mic. I doubted for a couple of months whether to buy it or not. I'm happy I did.

I ordered the Lewitt 140 Air on the basis of a review by producer and YouTube commentator Warren Huart to cope with a lute I needed to get good detail from in a live production. Neither Huart or Lewitt disappointed. The mic picked up fantastic frequency range and incredible detail from this string instrument in a large medieval church where we recorded accompanying vocals on other mics.

I have surprisingly used the Lewitt 140 Air out of desperation in an outdoor situation because every other mic I had on site was too heavy to risk on a boom, and despite some competition from well know mics for outdoor voice, the Lewitt trumped everything else. I don't know if I could do that again, but it saved a second trip to run the track again.

The machined aluminium case feels reassuringly solid despite the microphone's nominal weight and it feels like you could run over it with a car. I am not going to try that, but Lewitt has my attention and I think the Lewitt 140 Air competes with similar microphones that cost even three times its price. So glad to have it aboard.

The pop filter fits a little loosely and might be something that gets lost on the road, but I am not marking the microphone down for that.

As small condenser microphones go, this is an excellent all-rounder.

Pro:

At this price point, it's decently low self-noise.
Pad
High pass.
High shelf.
Build quality is exemplary.
Storage pouch is nice and well padded.

Con:

None that I can see now.

Other thoughts...

Lewitt doesn't offer the LCT 140 Air in matched pairs, which I think is unfortunate, but, I'm loving this microphone, and will acquire a few more, and will try to match a pair to use as mic overheads.

I ended up buying this mic on a whim to have another option in the mic closet, but I was pleasantly surprised by what I received.

Just like most people, I certainly have my preferences when it comes to which mics I put on which instruments, but this one came to me highly recommended (and for what it costs, I figured I might as well give it a shot).

For several months I had this on a stand and ready to go whenever I had a stringed instrument part to play in. At the end of the day, I personally prefer a bit more body on my acoustic guitars, but it's up front about its 'airiness' and this could be exactly what you're looking for (especially on other stringed instruments like ukulele or mandolin).

Positives: Delivers on the "air" promise, adds a brilliant/bright color to a recording, quite affordable, good build quality

Negatives: In same/similar price point as other more reputable mics, some unexplained noises at times (hums/hiss)

In summary: This mic certainly deserves every bit of attention that it gets. As stated, you really can't go wrong here for what you're paying. Great choice for a starter studio.